Defensive Stance
by Agent-M-0167
Summary: This is a continuation of Hidden Voices. It's the next day, and someone has an issue with whom Jinx is dating. I'll try to have a third part of the story completed by summer's end.


**Defensive Stances**

This is a continuation of a story I started. I'm a big fan of G.I. Joe, and felt that I needed to share some of the stories that I want to tell. Most of these stories follow the comics (Marvel and Devil's Due), although I'm still pissed that Lady Jaye is fking dead, so in my universe, she's not. Everyone else that's died is still dead…

**Legal B.S.: **I don't own G.I. Joe, or any of the characters (I wish I did). They belong to their prospective companies, so I'm asking not to be slapped with a lawsuit. Any original characters will be listed in this area. RiotGear, as well as The Stars and Bars Spectacular, are fictional bands I created, and use of it or anything placed in this story can be used, just ask for permission first. I'll be using Kimi (from Declassified series) as Jinx's first name. I willingly accept criticism (positive and negative).

**Premise: **The morning after the show, some people have an issue with who's dating who.

**Characters: **Shockwave, Jinx, Storm Shadow, Scarlett, and Snake Eyes are the major players. Doc (Carla Greer), Lifeline, Cover Girl, and Shipwreck are important to the story, so they're in here too. I'll have some others pop in as well, even if in name only.

**Note: **I'm keeping things similar to the comics. Pairings are Flint/Lady Jaye; Scarlett/Snake Eyes; Cover Girl/Shipwreck. Also, I've paired Lifeline up with Doc's niece (the new Doc), Carla Greer (Lifeline is probably my favorite character, and the man needs some love). I'm also going to make some references to the Animated Universe, but they are just mentions and shouldn't have any merit with them.

**Rating: **PG, for minor language, and some innuendo

**Part I: **Morning light (8:23 a.m.) Sunday morning

The sun peaked in through the windows on this beautiful morning. It lands on the bed and we look to see a new couple starting their first new day together. Jinx starts to stir from the light coming into Shockwave's room. She blinks the sleep from her eyes, and looks around.

"Jas, are you planning on sleeping all day?" She said.

Shockwave started to stir. He started to pull the covers over his head. Jinx nudged him a bit, trying to get him up.

"C'mon sleepyhead, get up. We're gonna miss breakfast." She said again.

"…five more minutes, that's all I…"

Jinx hopped out of bed. "Well if you're not gonna get up; I'll make you get up." With that, she grabbed the blanket and started pulling it off of Shockwave. He struggled, but didn't put up much of a fight. She was able to get the blanket off of him, and he wouldn't budge. She wasn't happy.

"All right you asked for it." She walked over to the bathroom sink, and turned on the faucet to cold. She grabbed the cup that was next to the sink, and filled it. She turned off the faucet and walked over to where he was sleeping.

"Last call, you getting up, or am I making you get up?" No response. "Okay, don't say I didn't warn you." With this, she dumped the cold water on his head and neck. Shockwave shot out of bed with a yelp.

"What the hell woman!!" Shockwave shouted. "A simple kiss would've sufficed!"

"Not a morning person, are we Jason?" she smiled back.

"You little imp..." he grinned back. "I'll get you back, just wait."

"Well, now that you're up and about, how about some breakfast?"

"Can I shower first?"

"Didn't you take one last night?" Jinx asked.

"Yeah, but it's one of those O.C.D. things that I have. Plus, it didn't help getting cold water dumped on me…" Shockwave smiled.

"I'll have to remember that for next time." Jinx smiled back. "Hand me my skirt."

Shockwave bent down and picked up her clothes. He handed them over to her with some difficulty. "I like the way you look now. If I only had a camera..."

Jinx laughed. "Thanks, but flattery will get you nowhere." She took the clothes from him and started to get dressed. She dressed quickly, and walked over to him. She gave him a quick kiss on the cheek. "I'll see you at the cafeteria in twenty?"

"Sure Kimi, I'll have to cut out kinda early. I gotta go see Ed."

Jinx looked at him puzzled. "You okay?"

"Oh yeah, but he said that there was something he wanted to talk to me about on my last physical. I'll have to head over after food." Shockwave replied.

Jinx just nodded. "Okay, I'll see you in a bit." With that she walked out the door.

Jinx walked out the door and into the walked to the elevator. She wasn't totally awake herself, and figured that climbing two flights of stairs was a bad idea. The elevator door chimed and she started to think that the stairs would have been a better idea.

In the elevator were Snake Eyes and Storm Shadow.

Snake Eyes smiled at her, but Storm Shadow looked like he was ready to kill.

_Good morning, Kimi. _Snake Eyes signed. _Have a good sleep?_

"It was…nice." She said, blushing. "Enjoying a weekend to catch up on some things, and getting to spend some time with friends, that's all"

Storm Shadow cleared his throat. "Did you have a nice evening?"

"I did, cousin. Thank you for asking." She replied. "How was your evening?"

She could tell that Storm Shadow was uncomfortable. "It was quiet."

Jinx nodded. The rest of the ride was so quiet; you could hear a pin drop. The elevator chimed and Jinx walked out of the car. The door then closed, and went up to the eighth floor.

_What's with you, Tommy? I've never seen you act like that to her…_

"I'm uncomfortable with whom she's seeing." Storm Shadow said.

_Jason? He's a stand up guy. _Snake Eyes continued. _What's wrong with him, if I may ask?_

"He's just doesn't seem like the type of guy I want dating my cousin, is all."

_What do you plan on doing? Beat the guy up? _

"The thought had crossed my mind."

_I was kidding. What is this high school? You're going to fight a perfectly good person because you don't approve of him? _

"Again, the thought crossed my mind, Snakes."

_If that's you stance on it, that's fine. All I ask is that you leave me out of this. You should really get to know him first. He's really a class act. You should have seen them at the show last night…_

"That's what I'm afraid of." Storm Shadow said, with a tone that said "drop it".

**Part II: **Breakfast of Champions (8:50 a.m.)

Shockwave stood outside of the cafeteria. He thought he would be late, so he took a quick shower and changed into his basic S.W.A.T. pants, boots and a tank top. He didn't want to get all dressed in gear, for he had to visit Lifeline. He'd get dressed and see where the day would take him. Apparently, Jinx was the one that was late. He saw her coming his way and decided to have some fun with her.

"You said twenty minutes…" he said.

"It was twenty minutes." she replied. "Why how long have you been here?"

"About ten minutes."

"Ten minutes? Sweetie, why didn't you call me? I would have hurried a bit more…" she noticed him smiling. "What's so funny?"

"Gotcha…"

Jinx punched him in the arm. It was a little harder that he expected. He didn't say anything, but he just rubbed his injury. Jinx looked at him and realized what she did. She looked at him and rubbed the same spot.

"Sorry…"

"Don't worry about it." Shockwave smiled. "I was kinda expecting it. I'll be fine."

"Well I hope so."

They headed into the mess hall to get food. When they opened the door, everyone stood up and cheered. Jinx and Shockwave looked surprised, and then felt a little embarrassed. It was Shockwave that acted first.

"So this is what a crowd cheering us on would sound like." he smiled and gave a little bow. He noticed that Jinx did the same. This caused the boys to laugh and smile. Shockwave then stepped a step to the right and took Jinx's hand. "Well, let's give the boys what they want." With this, he gave Jinx a little spin. She smiled and pulled herself close to Shockwave and gave him a kiss. The boys started cheering and giving wolf whistles. Shockwave just shook his head. He gestured over to the chow line to get food. They got a few things and found a table where Scarlett was sitting. She smiled at them, and offered them to sit.

"Morning, Shana." Jinx said. "How are you this morning?"

"Not bad. Great show you two." Scarlett smiled. "I haven't had such a great time in a while." She moved over to let Snake Eyes sit down.

_Hello again Kimi. _He signed. _Good morning to you as well Jason. Killer show man._

"Thanks, Snakes." Shockwave said. "Hope you had a good time."

_Shana and I haven't danced like that in a while. Of course I can't remember the last time we had that much fun._

"Well, there was the last time we went out to have a drink, Snakes." Scarlett blushed. Both Shockwave and Snake Eyes almost spit out their coffee. Jinx just laughed.

"Oh wow, um…" Shockwave scratched his neck in embarrassment.

_Nice Shana, real nice. The one time that I forget my mask in my room…_

"I never knew you to be a prude, cousin." Jinx smiled.

"I never said anything wrong." Scarlett said, sipping her coffee. "You actually think that we're all that straight-laced here? We're all human, after all."

"Speaking of strange reactions, Snakes…" Jinx said, trying to change the subject. "…What was the deal with Tommy this morning?" Scarlett looked over to Snake Eyes and then Jinx. She rolled her eyes, and just shook her head.

_I'd rather not say._

"Wait, what's wrong with Tommy?" Shockwave asked. "I didn't see him at the show last night. Is he feeling okay?"

_Actually, he seems to have a lot of energy now. _

Jinx dropped her fork, coming to the same revelation as Scarlett. "Oh shit. Cousin, are serious? What does he have against Jason?"

_Strangely, he doesn't approve._

"Did I miss something?" Shockwave asked.

"Yeah, you did." Scarlett said, looking quite angry. "It seems, according to Tommy that he doesn't approve of you dating his little cousin."

"What?"

"It's true." Jinx said sadly. "He's never really approved of me dating… well, actually anyone. Remember when Vince and I were dating for a short time?"

Shockwave looked at the three of them. "Yeah, I do. Does this have to do with the busted lip and the black eye he had after you two broke up?"

_That busted lip and black eye was all Tommy's doing. Vince threatened to pull rank, and that's when Tommy broke his arm. Needless to say, Vince broke things off._

"Damn coward." Jinx scowled.

"Falcon told me he broke his arm when he handled his shotgun the wrong way." Shockwave said. "He then told me that the busted lip and black eye was from that too."

Scarlett shook her head. "He would say that. He was too scared to tell the truth on that, and he was afraid of anything that would happen to him afterwards. That's why Jinx and Falcon broke up."

"It's all macho bullshit." Jinx grumbled. "Tommy is never happy. Apparently he wants me to marry someone that will protect me and all that male bull." Jinx stopped for a minute. "I'll understand if you want to break things off, Jason. You could get messed up pretty good."

Shockwave placed his hand on her cheek and looked into her eyes. He gave her a passionate kiss. Some of the boys started to wolf whistle again.

"Stow it guys!" Scarlett shouted.

Shockwave looked at Jinx and wiped a tear away from her cheek. "Then he'll have to kill me. I'm not gonna run and hide from him. If he's got a problem, he'll have to deal with it."

Jinx smiled. "I knew you were made of sterner stuff."

No sooner this was said, Jinx looked over to her left. Storm Shadow was right behind them. He didn't look happy. Shockwave stood up and smiled.

"Just the man I wanted to see."

"I'm here." Storm Shadow growled.

"Look, I just wanted to say that…" Shockwave could get out before Storm Shadow grabbed the front of his shirt.

"You don't talk to her, you don't look at her, and you don't think about her. Get it?"

Shockwave looked around at the mess hall. It seemed that everyone was looking their direction. "Yes I do, all the time. We spend a lot of time together outside of duty. We talk, and yes, I love her."

"You love her??" Storm Shadow said, anger and malice in his eyes. "Well, then I'll let you two be in love." He let go of Shockwave's shirt. He started to walk away. Shockwave sat down next to Jinx. Everything went back to normal.

"Wow. I'm surprised that when as well as it did." Scarlett said.

_He's up to something. I know he is._

"You shouldn't have done that." Jinx said, looking like she would cry. "He'll come after you when you least suspect it."

"Well, then this was a fine last meal." Shockwave said. "I need to go. I gotta get the results to my physical. I'll see you guys later?"

_I hope so. Keep a good chin up, Jason._

"I'll call you later, Kimi." Shockwave said, giving her a kiss. "Have a good one, guys." He walked over to the trash and dumped his garbage. He placed his tray in the wash pile, and walked out of the mess. He left the mess hall building and walked over to the medical building. He had to admit that he was a little shocked, but figured that Storm Shadow would have to get over it. He never dropped his eyes from Storm Shadow's, but he could tell there was a lot of anger there. He stood in front of the medical and opened the door.

The last thing he would see before everything going black was Storm Shadow getting ready to throw a haymaker punch to his face.

**Part III: **Medical Assist (9:47 AM)

Shockwave blinked. All he could remember was Tommy throwing a punch. He slowly sat up and looked around. He was in the recovery area of the medical wing. He felt like he got hit by a truck. What was Tommy's issue with him, he wondered. He guessed that no one would be good enough for his cousin, but he figured that somehow he would try to convince Tommy that he was worthy of Jinx's love. He slowly got up and looked around. He saw Lifeline coming towards him.

"Hey, I was just coming to check on you." Lifeline said.

"Yeah, how are you Ed?" Shockwave asked.

"I think better than you right now." Lifeline chuckled. "Let me guess, Storm Shadow?"

"If I were a betting man Ed, I'd say you're right." Shockwave nodded. "How did you know about this?"

Lifeline just smiled.

"It got around that much, huh?" Shockwave asked.

"Actually, yes it did." Lifeline replied. "That little stunt this morning in the mess confirmed what a lot of the boys were thinking." Lifeline smiled. "You actually kissed her in the mess in front of everyone. Didn't you look around to see who was there?"

Shockwave didn't reply. He thought in the back of his mind and realized that Storm Shadow was in the room. He didn't think of it, but they say that hindsight is twenty/twenty.

"Oops."

Lifeline chuckled. "Yeah that was a bit of a tactical error on your part, Jason. Oh well, I'm glad you're happy and that's all that matters. Come into the office, and we'll go over your test results."

The two of them headed into the office, and noticed that Doc was there too. She smiled when Shockwave walked in the room. Shockwave barely knew the original Doc, but went to his funeral a few years ago. It was Carla Greer, Doc's niece that joined the team sometime after his passing. She was just as good as her uncle, and some said that she was better. He waved at her, and she smiled back.

"Great show, Jason. Too bad Ed couldn't get away to see it." Doc smiled.

"Yeah, I think he would have had a good time." Shockwave replied. "Ed you're so uptight some times. I think that Carla here would have dragged you out on the floor."

"It's true, honey." Doc looked over to Lifeline. "We would have had a blast."

"Yeah, well with the rotation we've got down here, I'll be lucky to catch the next one."

Lifeline said the final sentence with some regret. Very few people knew that Doc and Lifeline were dating. Shockwave was one of those lucky few. He felt happy for Lifeline, for he heard about his previous relationship with the Van Mark girl, and his heart went out to him. Doc was a perfect match for him; Lifeline was always uptight, and Doc was very laid-back. They seemed to get along so well. Lifeline grabbed a file and sat down across from Shockwave.

"Well about the results of your blood test, everything came back clean. It's the same thing with your physical. I'm giving you a clean bill of health." Lifeline closed the file. "I will say that you need to take it easy for the next day or two. If you feel any dizziness or light-headedness, come down here right away."

Shockwave got up. "Thanks, Ed. I appreciate you seeing me today." He started to walk out, but stopped in the doorway. Maybe what he needed was some advice. He turned around and looked at the two of them. "Can I ask both of you something? If you don't want to answer, I'll understand."

Both Doc and Lifeline looked up. Doc spoke first.

"What's on your mind, Jason?" she said.

Shockwave fidgeted a bit, and closed the door: no sense in letting the world know his problems. "How do you two do it? How did you two keep things so quiet? How can the two of you work and find time apart?"

Lifeline smiled, as he looked over to Doc. She looked back at him with the same smile. "We make time. We learn to separate work and personal issues. It's not for everyone."

Doc nodded. "It's hard sometimes, but we know that people willingly accept what they see and what they don't see. Easy thing to do is to not pull a stunt like you did in the mess hall this morning. Try to keep a low profile."

"Now you tell me." Shockwave said.

"It comes down to the two of you." Lifeline replied. "If you two are happy, then share that happiness together. Carla and I enjoy each other's company. We talk about a lot of things and don't judge each other on it. Easiest thing is to just be yourself." Doc nodded on these words. Everything made sense to him, and for that, Shockwave was grateful.

"Thank you, both of you. I'll keep this in mind." Shockwave said, standing up. The two medics merely nodded as he walked out of the office. He walked down the hall and out of the medical wing. He knew what they would say, but hearing sounded a lot better than it did in his head. With that taken care of, the next part would be harder.

**Part IV: **Technical Planning (10:15 AM)

Shockwave left the medical building, and into the sunshine. He decided that with everything going well, he would take a jog around the complex. Even though Storm Shadow wasn't happy with him, he felt that a little exercise would do him some good. Not only that, but it would let him think on his ninja problem as well. He jogged past the Command quarters, the main base and started towards his dorm. He passed by the mess that he made his bold statement with Jinx about an hour or so, and thought that doing that again in public could be fatal. His mind raced on what to do next. He knew that a physical confrontation was out of the question. Not only was it not his way to do things, but he knew that he get his clock cleaned. A cop versus a ninja would be over in three seconds. His only way to get square with Storm Shadow was to talk to him. How was the next part to work on. He was so lost in thought that he didn't see Cover Girl going into the motor pool.

"Whoa, watch it Jas!" She exclaimed, nearly dropping the parts she was carrying.

"Sorry, Courtney. Are you alright?"

Cover Girl recovered and got her balance back. "Yeah, I'm fine. Just be careful next time. It took me forever to get these parts."

Shockwave apologized. "Is there anything I can help with?"

Cover Girl smiled. "Would you help me carry some of this? I think it's starting to fall over. I would like to get this back to the Wolverine in one piece."

Shockwave grabbed the top boxes and followed Cover Girl into the motor pool. She placed the boxes on a cart and helped Shockwave put the rest of them down. She took a look into his face and …

"Good God! How did you get that shiner?" She asked.

"Had a walk in to a fist."

"Tommy did that?!" Cover Girl asked. Shockwave nodded. "How long were you out cold for?"

"About a half hour from what I can figure." Was his reply. "Strangely, it barely hurts."

"Macho bullshit." Was all that Cover Girl could say to him. "Sounds like a certain sailor that I know. Of course, he would be plotting revenge at this time."

"Who made a pass at you this time, toots?" came a voice from behind Shockwave. They turned around and saw Shipwreck. "Damn, Supercop!! Hell of an eye you got there."

"Thanks for the compliment, Hector." Shockwave said, sarcastically.

"Will you two knock it off?" Cover Girl said frustrated. She turned to Shipwreck. "You helping me, swabby? I'm not getting this done by myself."

"Geez dollface, don't get your panties in a bunch. I'll get the tools." With that, Shipwreck headed back to the motor pool office.

Cover Girl just shook her head. "I'm sorry you had see that, Jason. He's a pain sometimes…"

"…but you wouldn't have him any other way. I know." Shockwave finished. He, like everyone on base knew that they were dating for a while. Most of the guys never knew what they saw in each other, but some understood that they really cared for each other. Shockwave knew that behind Shipwreck's tough exterior, was a really nice guy. That is what Cover Girl saw in him, and that's the reason that they were together. They complement each other.

"Look Jas, go talk to her." Cover Girl said, in almost a whisper. "She heard what happened and went looking for you."

Shockwave's brain clicked. She gave him the solution to his problem. He smiled and looked at Cover Girl. "Courtney, I should kiss you. Thanks!" With that, he took off to the dorms. Cover Girl looked at his back, confused. She came out of her thoughts when Shipwreck dropped the toolbox. She looked at Shipwreck, scared.

"Thanks Hector for giving me a few grey hairs." She said.

"Sure Court, no problem." He smiled back. "Where'd Supercop go off to?"

"Towards the dorms, sea dog." She said. Shipwreck looked her, confused. "I'm worried for him. They're a good couple, and I don't want my roommate upset again."

"They'll be fine." Shipwreck said, fixing his hat. "They're a good couple, and they'll be fine." He stopped, and looked at Cover Girl. "You want to follow them?"

Cover Girl thought about it for a moment. "No. No, we shouldn't. This is something they have to take care of." With that, they turned to the Wolverine and started working on it.

**Part V: **Tea with Mussolini (11 AM)

Shockwave ran into the dorms and ran up the stairs to the seventh floor. He ran out of the stairway and turned left. Jinx and Cover Girl's dorm was right there. He knocked on the door, out of breath, but with a new-found energy. Jinx opened the door, looking like she was crying for a good while.

"Oh Jason, what did he do to you?"

"It's nothing." Shockwave said, almost on instinct. "I have an idea."

Jinx looked at him, not knowing what to expect.

"Can you call your cousin?" He asked.

Jinx looked at Shockwave like he was crazy. "Did that blow to your face make you insane? You are my boyfriend, Jason Faria right?"

Shockwave walked into the room and walked over to the sink. He grabbed a glass and put some water in it. He drank it down in one fluid motion. He refilled it again.

"Kimi, it's me. It's always been me." He smiled to her. "In fact, I'm sure that if I talk to him, maybe we can come to some compromise."

Jinx looked a bit surprised. "You want to talk to Tommy?"

Shockwave smiled. "I do." He sat down. "Let me ask you something, has any of your past relations ever sat down and just talked to him?"

Jinx shook her head. She never really had introduced anyone to Storm Shadow. She knew that he wouldn't approve of her dating anyone. She looked at Shockwave. He sat there smiling. It then dawned on her.

"You want to talk to him, and explain everything." She smiled back. "Jason, that's brilliant." She walked over to the phone. "Why didn't I think of that earlier?" She picked up the phone and called Storm Shadow. "Cousin? Yeah it's Kimi. Are you busy? No? Can you come down to my room please? I would like to talk to you. It won't take long." She sat in silence for a couple of minutes. "You will? Thank you, cousin." With that, she hung up the phone.

"Well?"

"Tommy will be down here in a few." Jinx said. "Why didn't we think of this earlier?"

"We were caught up in our moment." Shockwave replied. He walked over to Jinx and hugged her. "I want you to know that whatever happens after this, I still love you and want to be with you. I'll take my chances with Tommy, and if it means death, I'll accept that."

"I think that if we talk to him, he'll understand." Jinx smiled. She kissed him and hugged him back. She broke from him. "I'll need to make some tea."

"I'll do it." Shockwave said. "Just warn him ahead of time. I think that being blind-sided in this issue would make things worse." He turned and walked into the kitchen. He filled up the teapot and put it on the stove.

There was a knock on the door. Jinx opened the door.

"Well, what did you want to talk to me about Kimi?" Storm Shadow said.

"I want you to come in and talk to Jason."

Storm Shadow's eyes grew wide. "He's here? I'll kill him."

Jinx was about to say something, but Shockwave interrupted. "Tommy, all I'm asking for is five minutes to explain." He brought the teapot and three cups on a tray to the living room table. "If after five minutes you still feel the same way, then you can continue to blind-side me and I'll take whatever you can dish out."

Storm Shadow glared at Shockwave. He was surprised at this, but he knew that Shockwave was being genuine. Storm Shadow sighed. He knew that this would continue on, whether he liked it or not.

"You have five minutes."

Shockwave smiled. He offered Storm Shadow a seat, which he took. He sat down next to him in another chair. Jinx poured the tea out and sat down next to Storm Shadow.

"I know that this isn't the way you wanted to find out about us." Shockwave said, making reference to the incident in the mess hall. "I should have come and talked to you about this first." Jinx looked like she wanted to say something, but Shockwave put up a finger. She waited until he was finished. "The truth is that I was nervous of asking Kimi out. I do care about her. She's been one of my closest friends for a long time. I know that we spend a lot of time together, and sometimes this happens with people that spend time together. I would not do anything to dishonor or disrespect her."

"What about this morning?" Storm Shadow asked.

"That, while I'm not sorry for what I did, was me showing off." Shockwave replied. "Most of the guys knew that we were always together. I know that there were rumors going around the base about us. None of them were true."

"All of them?" Storm Shadow asked.

"All of them. Truth is that we haven't dated a full twenty-four yet." Shockwave smiled. "I've never done anything with Kimi. I do love her, but not for the reason that most of the guys think."

"You love her for her?"

"I do." Shockwave nodded. "I'll admit that at first, it wasn't like that. But there was a turning point to this. It was our first Christmas here at base. Kimi was so sad that she was away from her family. I went and talked to her. It was that night that I realized that she wasn't an object, but a beautiful woman. We talked, and still talk about everything. We don't keep anything from each other. She knows what she's getting into, and I know what I'm getting into. We're both adults about this." He took a sip from his teacup. "I never wanted to hurt her in anyway. That's why we decided that we'd talk to you about this."

Storm Shadow nodded. He was lost in thought about this.

"Cousin, I know that you want me to be happy. I also know that you want someone that will take care of me." Jinx finally said. "Jason is that person. We've worked with each other for a long while. He's made sure that I'd come back alive and un-injured."

When she finished saying this, Shockwave took off his tanktop. He turned around so that his back was facing Storm Shadow. He noticed several scars on his back. "These scars were from a Viper that was aiming for her." He put his shirt back on. "I knew that if she didn't come back, I'd never hear the end of it. I wouldn't let myself hear the end of it either."

Storm Shadow looked at Shockwave surprised. "This was before everything? Before you two were close? Why?"

Shockwave thought about this. "I'm not sure why I did it at the time. I knew that my partner was in the line of fire. I wanted to make sure that she got home safe. I wasn't trying to score brownie points or anything." He shrugged. "I guess that I wanted her to live her life."

It was Jinx's turn to talk about this. "Why did you say anything? You almost died."

"You almost died?" Storm Shadow asked. "Why would you do something like that for someone you barely knew?"

"The truth was that I knew Snakes would take it kind of hard." Shockwave sighed. "I knew that you would somehow place the blame on yourself as well. I thought about it while I was being worked on. I know that we didn't really know each other, but I'm a pretty good judge of character. Chalk it up to being a cop for a long time. You learn some things on the beat, and I guess they just carried over to here."

Jinx got up and walked over to Shockwave. She hugged him, and for some time wouldn't let go. Storm Shadow watched this, and smiled. He knew that with some time, he would get to know this man that had fallen for his cousin. He knew that he would take care of her.

"Jason, you're a stubborn man." Storm Shadow finally said. "But, you're a good man too. I know that Kimi will be taken care of." Storm Shadow stood up. "I respect that you would arrange this and take a chance to talk to me. No one has ever taken that path with me."

"Thanks, Tommy. It takes a lot of guts to admit that." Shockwave said, standing up. He offered his hand out to him. Storm Shadow took the offer and shook his hand.

"Still doesn't mean that I like you." Storm Shadow said with a smile. Shockwave smiled back at him. Jinx shook her head.

"Why don't we change that?" She said. They looked at her confused. "I know that we talked about lunch together Jason. Why don't you stay with us for lunch? You could get to know him better."

Shockwave shrugged. "You're more than welcome. I'd like to get to know you as well. Of course, if you have something else to do, we'd understand."

"I'd like that."

**Part VI: **Like old friends (15:45 PM)

"What do you mean you haven't seen any of them in a few hours!?" Scarlett exclaimed.

_It's just like I said earlier. I was supposed to meet with Tommy an hour ago for meditation. He never showed up. _Snake Eyes signed.

"Oh god, no." Scarlett said getting up from her couch. "Jason could be dead for all we know." She ran out of her door and headed down the hall. She ran past Cover Girl.

"Shana, what's going on?" she asked.

"Snakes and I haven't seen Tommy or Jason for a couple of hours." She said over her shoulder. Cover Girl's eyes were as wide as saucers. She followed after her. Snake Eyes followed after Cover Girl.

"I hope that no one's hurt." Cover Girl said, reaching for her key. They made it to the door. Scarlett tried to open the door, but it was locked. She heard the strangest sound coming from the inside of the room: Laughter.

"They're laughing?" Scarlett asked. She knocked on the door. There was a muffled noise, followed by laughter. Cover Girl nudged Scarlett out of the way and unlocked the door. She opened it and the three looked in.

_Well, I'll be. _Snake Eyes signed. _You two were worried over nothing. _

The three of them were in the living room. They had a dart board on the wall and the three of them were using throwing stars instead of darts. On the dartboard was a picture of Beach Head on it. Jinx had a star and threw it. It landed between the legs of Beach Head. Jinx started laughing when Storm Shadow and Shockwave cringed.

"Remind me not to get her mad, Tommy." Shockwave said.

"Trust me, I'll keep you reminded on this." Storm Shadow smiled. "I'm making a mental note on that as well."

Jinx looked to the door. "Well, I was beginning to wonder when you would get here, Shana. We're having a little target practice."

Scarlett looked on in surprise. "What have you three been up to? I figured that Jason was dead, since we haven't seen you."

"Sorry, Shana." Storm Shadow spoke this time. "We had lunch, and starting talking. Well, we lost track of time. Did I miss meditation, brother?"

_You did. _Snake Eyes signed. _This actually looks like more fun. Can I get in next game?_ Scarlett looked at Snake Eyes with shock. _What? It looks like fun. C'mon Shana, what's more fun than bonding? We're all friends here, and besides its Beach Head. _Snake Eyes walked in, digging into one of his pockets for some stars.

Scarlett looked at Cover Girl. Cover Girl shrugged and walked into the room. She walked over to the phone. "I've gotta get Hector in on this."

Scarlett knew she was fighting a losing battle. She was glad that Storm Shadow and Shockwave were getting along. Seems that whatever they talked about, they came to an understanding. That understanding was that it was Jinx's happiness that was at stake. She knew that Shockwave wouldn't cave in, and knew that they would work out everything.

"Okay, where's the camera?" Scarlett asked, joining in the fun.


End file.
